A/N: It's finally done! This is just a quick note to all of you to let you know that while this is NOT the last chapter, it is the second to last chapter. It's kind of sad isn't it?
Once again, thank you Chava for taking the time to beta this… and off to the story.
Harry Potter and the Prophecy of the Phoenix – Chapter 22
Despite Harry's pessimistic prediction, Hermione had taken Ron's retelling of the incident very seriously, pumping Ron for more details.
"Where exactly did she point?"
Ron sighed in exasperation, "I don't know, Hermione. Just at me. Honestly, she's a nutter. You know that. You're the one who left the class in third year."
Harry saw Hermione's eyes focus on him and narrow slightly before she quickly dragged Ron off to the library once again with a renewed determination.
At first, Ron had willingly accepted Hermione's new research project, willing to do anything as long kept him busy. Now, the novelty of the project was wearing thin, and Ron found himself listlessly scanning the book that Hermione had handed him.
Finally, Ron's last bit of attention snapped, and he slammed the book shut, startling Hermione out of her deep concentration.
"Hermione, why exactly are we doing this? I know that Harry wanted to learn more about his mother's animagus form, but that's pointless now."
Hermione closed her book slowly, anxiety prominent on her features as her eyes darted nervously to the phoenix still perched on Ron's shoulder.
"I don't think that Harry was researching magical animagi because of his mother."
"What are you talking about, Hermione?"
Hermione took a deep breath. "I told you that Harry told me to keep Crookshanks close for a couple of days. I think that was Harry's way of telling me to keep an eye out for an animagus, and there are other things that Harry's done and said this year. I just never put them together, but I had to be sure-"
Ron's eyebrows knit as Harry's talons gripped a little more tightly on his shoulder and Hermione took another breath to steady both herself and her words.
"Ron, I think that Lightning is Harry."
Relief flooded through Harry, a note of unadulterated elation warbling out from his throat.
However, Ron's facial features softened into a look of concern.
"Hermione, you can't do this to yourself. Harry's gone. I know that it's hard, and I don't want to believe it either, but we're both going to have to accept that Harry's never coming back."
Hermione's eyes filled with tears as doubt clouded her features. Her gaze once again fell onto the phoenix perched on Ron's shoulder, and the desperation in that gaze pierced Harry straight through until it reached his soul.
The need to transform once again assaulted and overwhelmed him. Harry glided down to the ground off of Ron's shoulder to the floor, hoping that maybe, just maybe his magic had recovered just enough so that he could change back.
Harry called upon every ounce of magic he had to spare and felt himself begin to stretch in the first stages of the transformation, but it was not to be.
He simply was not strong enough and collapsed back into his animagus form, gasping for air and entirely spent.
Ron's eyes grew wide in disbelief as Hermione began to flip frantically through her stack of books.
"H-Harry?"
Harry managed a tone of misery between gasps of air.
Having found what she had been looking for, Hermione spoke gently but firmly. "Harry, I need you to relax as much as possible. It will make it easier."
She spoke an incantation, and a red jet of light burst from her wand and enveloped the still-gasping form of the phoenix.
The air was squeezed completely out of his lungs as Hermione's magic forced his body to contort and stretch into his human form.
When the spell finally released him, Harry took in a great gulp of air as his knees buckled beneath him, but a pair of hands caught him before he could hit the ground.
"Easy Harry. Just breathe." Ron spoke softly, still in a state of shock.
Unable to control herself, Hermione let out a strangled sob and rushed to her fallen friend, wrapping her arms tightly around him with tears streaming freely down her face.
"Harry James Potter, don't you ever do that to us again!"
Harry wanted to say something, to reassure her, to thank her, but he still could not draw enough air into his lungs and did not have enough in reserve to speak.
"You all right, Harry? You're still not breathing right." Ron spoke with blatant concern as Hermione released her hold on him to inspect him more carefully.
"We need to get you to the hospital wing."
Harry groaned internally even though he knew it to be necessary and managed to whisper, "Ron, can you get my invisibility cloak?"
Ron nodded but did not move, not wanting to leave his friend when he had just gotten him back.
"Go. I'll still be here- please."
It was both Harry's assurance and the fact that his breathing was becoming less panicked that prompted Ron to leave as requested, but that did not stop him from glancing back at his friend to reassure himself of Harry's continued presence.
"I knew that you'd figure it out."
Hermione's eyes suddenly flashed in anger, "You promised me-"
"That I wouldn't do anything stupid," Harry finished. "I'm sorry, Hermione, but I had to. It's a long story. I'll tell you everything- I promise."
Hermione nodded, only somewhat appeased.
"Hermione, why all the research? Why didn't you just look at the map or simply cast the spell on me in the first place?"
"I couldn't be certain how the map would react to a magical animagus. Besides-"
Hermione trailed off as her throat closed, and Harry squeezed her hand in support.
"Besides what?"
Hermione took in a breath of air to steady herself.
"Harry, looking at the Marauder's Map would have meant going into your trunk. I couldn't- and Ron… I couldn't do that to Ron. They tried to take away your stuff, and Ron threw a fit. He didn't take it well, Harry. None of us did, but Ron- I just couldn't ask him to do that."
"And the spell?" Harry prompted.
"Don't tell Ron, but Sirius and Remus weren't exactly honest with him. The reversal spell is fatal to animals that are not actually animagi. Even phoenixes can die if their natural cycle is interrupted. I couldn't cast the spell until I was sure, and I wasn't until you tried to transform."
"My magic hadn't recovered enough yet, but I had to try."
Hermione offered him a soft smile and squeezed his hand that was still wrapped around hers.
…
Ron, in his rush to get back to the library, nearly collided with Remus Lupin due to his inattention.
"Whoa!" Lupin remarked, catching Ron just in time. "Where are you off to in such a hurry?"
"Library. Harry."
With those words, Ron took off again, leaving Lupin to blink a couple of times in surprise before hurrying after him.
He stopped short with a gasp as he saw for himself why Ron had been hurrying.
"Sweet Merlin! Harry?"
Harry quirked a smile. "Hey, Remus."
"I don't believe it. How?"
"It's a long story-"
"And we need to get Harry to the hospital wing." Hermione interrupted.
Immediately, concern clouded over Lupin's curiosity as he studied the young man and crouched beside him. "Are you okay, Harry? Can you walk?"
"I'm okay, Remus. Just really tired."
Lupin nodded, understanding that Harry had neglected to answer the second question because he did not want to betray his weakness.
"I have Harry's invisibility cloak." Ron offered softly.
Lupin took the cloak and draped it over Harry before lifting him into his arms.
"Relax, Harry. We'll get you to the hospital wing in no time."
Harry did lean him head into Lupin's shoulder as Hermione and Ron took positions in front of Lupin to hide the fact that their former professor was obviously carrying something.
"Poppy!" Remus called immediately upon entering the hospital wing, which was mercifully empty.
The mediwitch bustled out of her office, obviously concerned by the urgency in which her name had been called.
"What's going on- Good heavens!"
The exclamation came as Lupin gently placed Harry on a bed and removed the cloak.
Recovering from her shock quickly, Pomfrey ordered all of them out while she examined him, and Harry called out a request for them to return with Sirius, Dumbledore, and McGonagall.
…
"Sirius!"
Lupin practically skidded into the temporary quarters that the two were occupying, earning him a rare interested look from his recently despondent friend.
"Sirius, you need to get to the hospital wing immediately! It's Harry!"
Sirius went white as his blood ran cold and drained from his face.
"They found his body?
"No, he's alive. Poppy's looking over him right now, but he's going to be all right."
Sirius looked at his fellow Marauder in utter disbelief, "That's not funny, Remus."
Lupin gripped both of Sirius's shoulders. "I would never joke about that, Sirius. You know that."
Sirius backed away from his friend and out of his grip, simply staring at him wide-eyed.
"Harry?" He whispered, still not believing what he had been told.
Lupin nodded, and at this nod, Sirius immediately transformed into Padfoot and bounded off at top speed towards the hospital wing.
The only warning Harry received to alert him to his godfather's arrival before Sirius's arms encircled him tightly was a choked calling of his name.
"I thought that you were dead! I thought that I'd lost you!" Sirius spoke in anguish, not caring that tears of relief had begun to stream down his face.
"It's all right, Sirius." Harry spoke the words softly, sensing that it was not the right moment to inform his godfather that he had indeed died.
Sirius simply held Harry tighter, not releasing him until a startled gasp and exclamation shattered the temporary reality that had only encompassed the pair.
Dumbledore and McGonagall had appeared in the hospital wing doorway, and unlike Sirius, they had been completely unprepared for what they would find.
Dumbledore made the first move, stepping slowly towards Harry with an uncharacteristic look of pure amazement.
"Harry?" Dumbledore breathed in a voice that barely rose above a whisper.
This time, Harry simply nodded in response, startled at the tears that were shining unshed in Dumbledore's eyes.
The moment was broken when Madam Pomfrey hurried back with a tray of various goblets, and Harry saw as McGonagall also stepped into the room the Ron, Hermione, and Lupin were all just outside the door.
Ignoring Harry's sigh as he eyed the sheer number of goblets, Pomfrey turned her attention towards the headmaster.
"I know that you're going to need to talk to him, but his magical reserves are quite low. He's going to need to rest."
"We'll make it as brief as possible." Dumbledore promised.
Pomfrey seemed less than satisfied but nonetheless collected the empty goblets, leaving Harry with his audience of six, which was now gathered around his bed.
Before anyone could say anything, Fawkes popped into the room with a burst of flame, singing a couple of notes before landing on Harry's shoulder.
Harry's senses opened on instinct as he felt the phoenix's warmth sink into him, and though he could not hear Fawkes's words in his human form, he could feel the concern for his welfare and the sense of precaution Fawkes was urging him to take.
His gaze rose to meet the now knowing eyes of his headmaster.
"Sir, if you wouldn't mind, would you put up a silencing charm?"
Harry could not quite find the words to explain his request, but they were not necessary as Dumbledore simply smiled at him benevolently, nodded, and cast the spell.
"I take it that you have quite the story for us, Harry. Are you well enough to tell it?"
Harry nodded, nerves beginning to irritate his stomach, which was now uncomfortably full with healing potions.
"Are you sure, Harry? We can wait if you need us to." Sirius spoke up, taking Harry's hand as if needing the physical contact to remind him that his godson was actually still there.
"I'm okay, Sirius, really. It's just- It's long and complicated, and I'm not sure exactly where to begin."
"I've often found that the beginning is often a good place to start." Dumbledore stated with the twinkle back in full strength in his eyes.
Harry knew exactly what he wanted to say, but he could not bring himself to speak, feeling hot tears begin to pool in his eyes and his throat close to hold back the sobs of release that so desperately wanted to escape him.
A sense of disgust rose within him in response to his perceived weakness. He had no right to break down, having caused so many people so much pain because of his lies and half-truths.
Fawkes warbled another warm note, but this time Harry closed his senses, not feeling as if he had the right to accept the phoenix's calming ministrations.
The soft squeeze of a hand on his unoccupied shoulder drew his attention back to Dumbledore's searching gaze. Seeming to sense Harry's discomfort, Dumbledore took the first step in opening the floodgates.
"How long have you been an animagus?"
"Since last September." Harry murmured, unable to hide his wince as his godfather's grip tightened around his hand in anger.
"So you faked everything that happened during your animagus lesson? Why didn't you just tell us that you were already an animagus?"
"I couldn't." Harry responded, guilt tarnishing the timbre in his voice.
"I also have no doubt that Harry's reaction to your lesson was very real." Dumbledore cut in, trying to draw Harry out of the shell that he was drawing himself further and further into. "I don't know of anyone else who has managed to transform so entirely into a form that was not their own, but I do know those who have experienced similar endeavors reported that the results were most unpleasant."
Sirius sputtered out the words, "Wrong form?" as Harry nodded in response to Dumbledore's statement and then added a few soft words of his own.
"I'm a phoenix."
"Fawkes's friend." Remus breathed with sudden realization.
Once again Harry simply nodded, and this time, it was McGonagall, who had finally found her voice, that commented.
"But that's an amazing accomplishment. Why keep that a secret?"
Harry noticed that even though she seemed impressed, she also seemed a bit uncomfortable, and he had no doubt that she was remembering what had happened when she stepped out of class. Pretending that he could not see her discomfort, Harry simply responded to her question.
"Because I was told that my life depended on it."
"Who told you that, Harry?" Dumbledore asked, frowning as if contemplating all of the possibilities.
"Fawkes." Harry responded as the phoenix trilled on his shoulder. The phoenix's name seemed to be the key that released the damn, and Harry found himself telling them about everything from learning about the prophecy to recounting the final battle with Voldemort and his rebirth.
When he finished, a sudden wave of fatigue descended upon him, and he collapsed back onto his pillows, completely spent and unaware that his audience was staring at him with various expressions of astonishment and awe.
Dumbledore started to reach for him again but this time withdrew his hand, feeling unworthy of establishing a closeness with the teen much like he had felt unworthy of touching Harry's wand the night Harry had defeated Voldemort.
Dumbledore opened his mouth a couple of times, but when he was unable to find words that were even slightly adequate to express his pride or his guilt, he settled with simply voicing, "Thank you, Harry. We'll let you rest now."
Sirius looked as if he was about to argue, but Harry beat him to it.
"Could Sirius and Remus stay a little longer?"
"Of course, but do get some rest." Dumbledore once again started to make a movement towards him, but stopped himself, offering only a smile instead.
Fawkes was the first one to speak his good-bye, trilling shortly before moving to Dumbledore's shoulder, and after a couple of minutes, Harry found himself alone with the Marauders.
Fatigue was pulling at him, but he wanted to get one last thing out before he succumbed to the sleep that his body was demanding.
"There's one more thing that I wanted to tell you." Harry spoke, forcing his eyes to stay open. "When I died, I saw my parents, and they wanted me to give you a message. Hold on a minute. I want to get this exactly right. Mom said to tell the mangy mutt and the tired old wolf thank you, and Dad said to tell the remaining Marauders that he was disappointed in them because in all the times you've been here you haven't played one prank on Snape."
Though they both had seemed touched by Lily's message, the message from James sparked instant mischievousness in Sirius's eyes especially, and there seemed to be a silent communication between the pair of Marauders.
"I don't want to know what the two of you are thinking about, but could you at least wait until after the O.W.L.s?"
Remus grinned in such a way that Harry was no longer sure Remus was not dangerous except during the full moon. "You don't understand, Harry. We couldn't tell James 'no' when he was alive, much less deny him his last request."
"Besides," Sirius added knowingly, "You'll thank us later."
Harry wanted to argue but could not longer overcome his exhaustion and found himself slipping away far into the depths of slumber.
…
Red eyes shone in the darkness, which receded enough so that Harry could make out the serpentine features of Voldemort's face.
Harry yelped as his scar suddenly exploded with pain, and he barely heard the hiss of Voldemort's voice through the roaring of his ears.
"It's not over, Harry Potter."
"Harry, wake up!"
Harry sat up in bed, gulping for air as his hand went immediately to his scar.
"Are you all right, Harry? Is it your scar?"
Harry moved his hand away from his scar, realizing that the pain had not followed him from his dream and was surprised to find his movement a little shaky.
"No, I'm fine. It was just a dream."
Blue eyes searched him with obvious concern before Dumbledore spoke again.
"It seems Harry that we've come full circle. If my memory serves me correctly, we started this year the same way with you having a nightmare and me waiting to somehow explain to you how I could have failed you so atrociously."
"You didn't-"
"But I did. Despite how proud I am of what you've managed to accomplish this year, you should have never had to endure it alone, but I was selfish and scared. I could not bear to steal the last traces of your innocence away, and because of that, I made your burden even harder to bear. I really am sorry, Harry. I wish…"
Dumbledore trailed off as twin tears fell from his eyes and became entangled in his beard.
"Professor, don't apologize. Really, it's okay. Everything worked out in the end."
"The end does not justify the means, Harry."
These words came out almost as a whisper, and Harry took the time to notice how old and how tired the man sitting at his bedside appeared.
"You know, Hermione told me something earlier in the year that I think I should share with you. You're only human."
Dumbledore actually chuckled, more out of astonishment than anything else.
A tentative smile started to form on Harry's face when an ice-cold panic rushed through his veins.
"Harry?" Dumbledore questioned, gripping the young man's arm without his previous hesitation, knowing that something was wrong.
"I forgot- I mean, it's not as important as it used to be- but I can't believe that I forgot-"
"Calm down, Harry. What did you forget?"
"What I told all of you-"
Immediately, Dumbledore understood and broke in before Harry could become even more upset.
"Just relax. We understood that you wanted to keep what you said in our confidence when you asked me to put up a silencing charm, although I must say that Professor McGonagall was most distressed that we would be unable to share with Professor Trelawney that she was indeed correct."
With Dumbledore's assurances and Harry's knowledge that there was no love lost between McGonagall and Trelawney, Harry felt himself relax.
Dumbledore seemed only then to recognize consciously that he had initialized physical contact with Harry and quickly removed his hand, attempting to excuse the movement by arranging Harry's pillows behind him.
Harry leaned back into the pillows gratefully, unaware that he had closed his eyes until he felt himself drifting off. Not ready to fall asleep again so soon, he opened his heavy eyelids.
"Sir, may I ask you a question."
"Of course."
"Why didn't you want to believe it was me? I know that you recognized my magic after I sat on your shoulder, and I know that Professor Trelawney isn't always credible, but still…"
"I did want to believe it was you, Harry, very much so, maybe even too much so. I convinced myself that I was seeing and sensing things because I wanted to. I-"
For the second time that evening, Dumbledore became too choked up to finish his response.
"It's all right. I understand." Harry fidgeted for a moment in the uncomfortable silence that had draped heavily around them before blurting out, "What am I going to do about my O.W.L.s?"
"You'll have to postpone them, I'm afraid. Your magic has been understandably drained, and I'm not about to put your recovery in jeopardy for the sake of a few tests."
"But couldn't I take the written parts with the others and the practical parts that don't require magic?"
Dumbledore looked deeply into the emerald depths of Harry's eyes, trying to find the reason why taking the O.W.L.s on time was so important to him when most of his peers would have been grateful for the delay.
Please let me be normal. I'm so tired of being a freak.
The words were soft, tickling their way into Dumbledore's thoughts, and Dumbledore could not be sure that he had not imagined them.
"What practicals are you thinking about?"
"Potions, Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures, and Divination."
"I will consider letting you take the written portions as well as the practicals for Potions and Herbology, but I'd rather you wait to take your Care of Magical Creatures practical considering Hagrid's taste in… interesting creatures. I'd rather have your magic at your full disposal just in case. As for Divination, your being allowed to participate without the full use of your magic would be insulting to Professor Trelawney." Dumbledore looked over his half-moon spectacles directly at Harry. "If I allow you to do this, it will be under the condition that you put your recovery above studying for your O.W.L.s. If I see that you're pushing yourself to the point of your detriment, I will not hesitate to withdraw the offer. Do you understand?"
"Yes, sir. Thank you."
Harry felt his eyes closing again of their own accord.
"You should go back to sleep, Harry. We can talk again later."
"You should get some sleep too, sir. You look tired."
"I promised your godfather that if he left and got some sleep that I would stay with you. Besides, I doubt that I could sleep after all that has happened today."
Harry's eyes were half-closed, so Dumbledore could not see the sparkle that glinted momentarily in them.
"There are plenty of empty beds here. I'm sure Madam Pomfrey would not mind if you used one, and I'm sure she'd be more than happy to fetch some Dreamless Sleep Potion for you."
Harry felt gentle hands guide him back into a supine position and heard his headmaster whisper quietly, "Don't even think about it, Harry."
A sudden and unexpected worry assaulted Harry, causing him to force his eyes open again.
"What am I supposed to tell people when they ask where I've been? I never thought…"
"It's all right, Harry. Let me worry about that. Just sleep now."
The last thing that Harry wanted was to add to Dumbledore's overly large burden, but he did not have the strength to argue and simply acquiesced with an affirmative murmur.
"Sleep well, Harry."
Harry's mouth moved to form the words, "You too," but the movements were slow and uncoordinated, not to mention the fact that his voice would not work.
That was the last thing that he knew before the need to sleep drowned him once again.
…
"Potter! I should have known that you had a part in this!"
The fuming of his Potion's professor, who sounded completely unsurprised to see that he was not dead, demolished Harry's blissful sleep. Suppressing his own frustration, Harry reached blindly for his glasses and slipped them on as he sat up and opened his eyes.
For a moment, Harry thought that he was still dreaming and was unable to do anything but stare.
Snape's greasy hair and his robes were a stark scarlet against his now metallic, golden skin.
Harry's mouth worked like a fish for what seemed like an embarrassingly long amount of time before he blurted out, "Professor, what did you do?"
"What did I do? Tell me Potter, why do you think that immediately after my appearance changed I found myself forced to travel to your bedside?"
Thanks a lot, Dad. You just couldn't say thank you like Mom did, could you.
Madam Pomfrey rescued Harry before the flustered teen could sputter out some inadequate explanation.
Honestly, Severus, the child has not moved from this bed and was resting peacefully until you barged in with your unfound accusations. He's in no condition to get worked up right now, so I must insist that you leave.
Snape glared, narrowing his eyes with the obvious intent of informing Harry that he knew better than to believe that the latter was completely innocent, and whirled around to head towards the exit with as much dignity as he could muster, revealing the flashing words on the back of his robes that read, "For Prongs."
The animosity that had begun to build inside Harry faded with the sight of the words. Even though he was well aware that there would be consequences later, he felt himself oddly moved by the gesture, and he could not help but reminisce on everything they had done for his parents… and for him.
With his body on autopilot, Harry was barely aware that Madam Pomfrey had handed him a goblet or two and had ordered him back to sleep after he had downed the contents.
The sound of a throat clearing in irritation jerked Harry out of whatever realm his thoughts had taken him, and when his vision focused, he found himself faced with identical red-headed figures staring at him with their arms crossed.
For some reason, Harry felt more nervous at the sight of the obviously annoyed Weasley twins than he had upon awakening to the obviously furious Snape.
"I think that he's been holding out on us, George."
"What are you talking about?" Harry questioned, feeling his anxiety heighten.
"What are we talking about?" George asked as if he could not believe Harry had asked the question.
"I believe we should remind him, brother dear"
"That in his Third Year"
"We gave him the Map"
"One of our most prized possessions."
"We told him that the Marauders were our idols"
"And to our shock"
"We just saw Professor Snape leaving the Hospital Wing"
"I'm sure we don't need to remind you what was written on the back"
"And since Snape obviously thought you were involved in such a brilliant prank"
"We could only come to one conclusion:"
"That you know who the Marauders are and never told us!"
The last part was spoken in unison, and Harry could not help but feel a little dizzy as the twins seamlessly traded off the details of their grievance.
"Oh." Harry answered simply.
He did not say more until both of the twins cocked an eyebrow while querying, "Well?" with obvious expectations in their voices.
"Where do you want me to start?" Harry asked innocently, receiving the identical looks of irritation that he had been aiming for.
"Prongs." Fred prompted.
Harry found himself grinning, "Prongs was my dad."
The looks of irritation melted from the twins' faces, and both sets of arms unfolded as they stared at Harry in admiration.
"You're the son of a Marauder?" George voiced in a near-whisper.
At Harry's nod, Fred took over the conversation.
"Well, now we know that the map is where it rightfully belongs."
"Who are the others?"
"Padfoot is Sirius Black, and Moony is Remus Lupin." Harry concluded, purposely leaving out the final name.
"Did you hear that, George? We were taught by a Marauder!"
"No wonder we had such a hard time pranking him."
"What about Wormtail?"
Harry's face hardened, the grin sliding off his face as if it had never been there. "Wormtail is Peter Pettigrew."
"No." George voiced in denial as both twins suddenly looked disillusioned.
"I can't believe that a Marauder would-" Fred cut himself off sharply as if realizing exactly who was sitting in front of him. "I'm sorry, Harry."
"It's all right. I learned about it a long time ago. At least Sirius is free now."
Both nodded somberly as if their world had just been shattered.
George was the first one to find his voice, "While we're being serious, Harry, it's good to have you back."
"Yeah, are you feeling better?"
Not knowing what they had been told, Harry answered nondescriptly, "I'm fine, just sick of feeling tired all the time."
"You should have seen the Great Hall this morning when Dumbledore made the announcement that you were alive."
"It was mayhem." Fred finished proudly, a bit of mischief making its way back into his features.
Harry managed a half-smile as a heavy wave of drowsiness crashed over him.
One of the twins slipped off Harry's glasses, revealing that his eyes had already closed, as the other helped him lie down.
He was treading in the deep murkiness that marked the transition between his conscious and subconscious mind when he heard soft voices speak to him.
"Don't go to sleep just yet, Harry."
"We need you to sign this."
"Just take the quill."
"That's right. Now sign your name."
"Excellent. Sleep well, Harry."
When Harry awoke again, he could only remember that he had fallen asleep while talking to Fred and George. The rest of what had happened was dismissed by his mind as nothing more than an inconsequential dream.
A/N: Well, that's it for now. I will post the review responses for this chapter and the previous at my yahoo group… I promise! Thank you to all of you who reviewed, and please, while constructive criticism is welcomed, flaming is just plain mean. One more chapter to go!
